A Very Serious Dialtone

The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy has brought to my attention and many others, that we have become very dependent on technology. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but when the natural disasters strike, do we know how to do anything? Ten years ago, most people could rattle off a few phone numbers if they needed to. 15 years ago, most people could tell you a lot of numbers, or at least had them written down in a location they could get to. Now, most people do not remember more than one or two phone numbers, and if they lose their cell phone they are stuck. That is until they get on facebook and have people send them their phone numbers. But if the power is out and there is no way to access the internet, most people do not have a battery powered radio to find out emergency information. In a country where we can have backup generators to watch every football game as we tailgate in the parking lot of the Georia Dome; most people are not truly prepared for a minor natural disaster that takes out power for a few days.

Firewalls...only YOU can prevent viruses.

It is common knowledge that personal computers and work computers should run some type of firewall. Windows Firewall is now implemented with all Windows Operating System releases. It does not have to be used, but it is there. For most users it will be enabled when Windows 7 is installed unless the user decides not to use it. It is a safe a practical way to make sure your computer has some sort of protection from outside sources if you plan to connect to the Internet. And let's face it, you plan on connecting to the Internet. AVG has a free version of their excellent firewall which is top notch as well. No matter what you choose, choose something. For most people, the Internet seems harmless, but in actuality the Internet is an access point for everyone in the world to put information on your computer. Whether it is a cookie, or download of an email attachment, information is put on your computer each time you connect to the Internet. Do you really think about the thousands of connection attempts that are being made even as you read this post? Most people do not. The sheer number of outbound and incoming requests from web browsing and other programs that are run on a normal computer increases as more programs connect to the Internet to get updates or report data. How do you know if all of these connections are necessary or even wanted. It is very difficult to descern which items are actually harmful to your computer. Bottom line, make life easier and avoid a potential virus or rootkit, use a firewall.